Top 5 Tips for Cleaning Your Outboard Motor
As the great Ned Stark said (a lot): Winter is Coming. There’s definitely an autumn chill creeping in with the back-to-school sun and it won’t be long before freezing temperatures come to claim unprepared outboard motors! Therefore, whether it’s a regular maintenance, or a full scrubbing before winter storage, we’re outlining our Top 5 Tips for cleaning your boat’s Outboard Motor.
First Thing’s First
This might seem obvious, but safety first! Outboard motors are packed full of sharp objects, debris from the ocean, potentially harmful liquids and grime, and of course, rapidly spinning propellers.
Ensure you have an adequate supply of safety gear – including goggles, helmets, heavy-duty-gloves – as well as appropriate tools for disassembling and reaching into the bowels of the engine.
Also please do NOT let small children anywhere near your area while you clean your engine!
Engine Flush
Before you carry out any repair work you should always fully flush out the engine of all internal water. When you start taking apart the engine to clean, repair or replace various components, water may get in where it shouldn’t and cause serious damage to parts of the engine it would not otherwise access.
This is particularly important for engines used most commonly in salt-water as a lot of the grime and build-up in the engine will come from underneath the water. So in order to thoroughly clean out the motor, it will need to be drained of all water.
Pumps & Pipes
Following nicely on from water is the internal pumps and pipes of the engine. Even if you haven’t used the engine much, grime buildup and debris can still lodge in the various pumps and pipes of the outboard motor.
You can check this by running some water through the pumps and evaluating how smoothly the water flows through – any stuttering or blockages you should remove entirely, using safety cleaning poles or bleach; or replace the pump/pipe entirely.
Drain Oil
Noticing a pattern here? Liquids in the engine are the most important thing to remove in order to properly clean it.
Oil draining is particularly important when cleaning the engine ahead of winter storage. Even in storage, colder temperatures can cause leftover oil residue to continuously expand and contract, which may cause cracks and leaks in the engine – which may be very expensive to repair.
However, even mid-year, it’s a great habit to get into to regularly clean out your oil pipes & fuel tank. Bacteria which can erode engine material and even be harmful to humans can build-up among rotting oil build-up, which can occur quicker than you might expect – meaning regular draining’s are a must!
Exterior
Last but not least, give her a bath! Yes, really! It’s very important to clean the outer shell/cowling of the engine regularly. Aesthetics aside (and let’s be honest who doesn’t love seeing a sparklingly clean engine cover) if an engine cover isn’t clean the engine itself may not run properly.
Corrosion, rust, cracks, algae and other bacteria are the most common form of damage & build-up you will find on the exterior of your boat’s motor.
We recommend using a mix of automotive soap, such as Union Boat Buddy All Over Boat Wash, and a light application of water through a simple hose or bucket. Power/Pressure hoses may actually cause more damage to the cover of the engine, which is typically not likely to be made of overly thick or strong materials. A lighter touch is best.
